Tracking helps!

Happy Sunday Peeps!

I had a great week, but it was only 4 days long!  I have to say that I am turning a corner.  I have lost for the second consecutive week, and I am finally starting to find my groove at work.  I think that there is something to be said about multiple factors playing into how you do on your weight loss journey.  When things are off, whether it be personally or at work, it can make things hard for you.  Conversely, when all things are going well, it sort of gives you that momentum to continue.  I also find that I have better weeks when my tracking is on point.

I managed to get to the gym twice last week (still fine tuning the schedule there, but I am doing what I can there), and although I had a bunch of stuff to do this weekend, I managed to get a walk in with my husband on Saturday.  I missed my girls at Parker Square, but I didn't miss my walk.  We did just under 5K (2 3/4 miles), but considering the heat? Not too bad.

I scored a couple of kitchen victories with the kiddos last week.  I made meatball sandwiches using a recipe that my former leader, Kathryn, had posted on the meeting room board awhile ago.  I also made Friday night taco night and used corn shells with a bunch of healthy toppings (fat-free refried beans, diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, 2% shredded cheese, salsa). I used a lean (93/7) ground beef for the meat component and let each family member design his/her own taco.  Adam gave this dish (and the meatball sandwiches) an "awesome".

A tip for those out there with the picky eaters: Make note of what they enjoy and work those items into the meal rotation for the week.  I figure I can do this at least until Adam decides that he won't eat those dishes anymore.  Does anyone else have this?  His nickname is actually Mr. Peanut Butter Sandwich, for obvious reasons.

I have been making sure I tracked accurately over the last few weeks, and I think I am finally seeing results from that.  I love the enhancements that Weight Watchers has made to eTools over the last couple of months.  I have noticed the following changes on the iPhone app and on the website:

• On the iPhone app, reminder messages can be set and customized to help you track your meals 
• On the eTools settings on the website, you can now switch off between using activity points vs. WPA first.  I know many of us wished they would add this functionality
• On eTools, there now progress reports to help you gauge your progress.  There are also many things BESIDES food that you can track as well--activity, hunger signals, good health guidelines, inches lost, dress size...it's a pretty powerful tool. 
  

No I don't work for the Company, but I do believe in letting you all know when a great product, such as e-Tools, is out there.  It may not seem like a big thing, but the simple act of tracking does many things.  Here's what it does for me:

1. Keeps me honest. 
2. Makes me aware of what goes into my mouth, and how much
3. Gives me motivation
4. Provides me needed FEEDBACK on my choices, good bad or ugly
5. It also provides great reference material.  I don't care if you are following Weight Watchers or any other plan.  Tracking gives you that frame of reference that allows you to go back to a particular day, week or month and see what worked for you (or didn't work).  You can always go back and repeat the week or day if needed.
   
6. Helps you ensure that you are meeting the good health guidelines.

When I don't track...things tend to fall apart for me.  When I do track, it's amazing what can happen. 

Since the meeting this week dealt with tracking, I wanted to relay a few things that I jotted down from the meeting room board:

What can we track besides food?

• Habits - recognize habits you are changing or developing
• Feelings - thoughts at the end of the day
• Nutrition - progress with the good health guidelines
• Setbacks - what did you learn from your mistakes? This is that feedback I was referring to earlier
• Successes - make note of ALL your successes, no matter how large or small.  A victory is a victory!
• Weekly Goals - commit to something this week. Follow it through!
• Anticipated Obstacles - prepare and prevent rather than repair and repent! (I love this one!)

I hope you all have a fabulous week.  I wanted to end with this quote from the meeting room wall.  I loved it, and as usual, I wanted to share!

Good judgment comes from experience, and often
experience comes from bad judgment.

~Rita Mae Brown, American novelist

Recipe

Buttermilk-Basil Sorbet

I saw this one on the Weight Watchers website, and want to give this one a try.  It seems like the perfect light summertime dessert.  This dish offers an incredible flavor combination. For another delicious variation, swap cilantro or tarragon for the basil, and consider using lemon instead of lime.



PointsPlus™ Value:    3
Servings:  12 (approx 1/2 cup each)
Preparation Time:  89 min
Cooking Time:  6 min
Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Ingredients:

1-1/3 cup(s) sugar, granulated, divided  

2/3 cup(s) water  

1 cup(s) basil, fresh, cut into ribbons, minced*  

4 cup(s) buttermilk  

3 Tbsp fresh lime juice  

2 tsp lime zest, finely minced  

Instructions:

To make basil syrup, combine 2/3 cup sugar with 2/3 cup of water in a small saucepan; bring to a boil for 1 minute. Reduce heat to low, add basil and simmer for 5 minutes; set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, combine remaining 2/3 cup sugar with buttermilk, lime juice and zest; mix until sugar dissolves. Add cooled basil syrup to buttermilk mixture and mix thoroughly.

Run sorbet mixture through an ice cream maker according to its package directions (if you do not have an ice cream maker, see notes below). Transfer sorbet to a container and freeze for 12 to 24 hours before serving. Yields about 1/2 cup per serving.